Rebirth
by The Official Demonator
Summary: DO NOT READ THIS SUMMARY OR ONESHOT IF YOU DON'T WANNA READ SPOILERS! How do you tell your daughter that her family guardian has been brutally murdered? How do you tell yourself? Oneshot.


**NOTE: IF YOU HAVENT SEEN THE THIRD MOVIE, DON'T READ! (UNLESS YOU WANNA READ ANYWAY. xD)**

**SPOILER ALERT!**

**SPOILER ALERT!**

**SPOILER ALERT!**

**You've been warned.**

**I own nothing.**

**And also, I don't think there's an official place where Lennox lives, so I'm just making it someplace random in California. *shrugs* I don't live there, so I don't know much about it. xD**

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><p>Sarah sat at the kitchen table, smiling and watching as her six year old daughter chatted away on the phone about something she hardly understood. She was rambling so fast, it was nearly impossible to follow along. She had already spoken to her father, now she was on the phone with her guardian, Ironhide.<p>

"Today me and mommy went outside to the park and we played hide and go seek and then slid down the slides. It was so much fun, but I wish you were there. " There was a sharp breath, "-And then we decided to go out for some ice cream and then after that we went down to the little police farm they have in the park and the," Another sharp breath and then.. "-horses were out so we got to pet them. I really wish you could've been there, 'Hide. It was a lot of fun." She took a deep breath, waiting for the response.

Sarah shook her head with a laugh. It was amazing how a little girl could look up to a giant alien robot so much. Unfortunately, said robot and her husband were out on duty, working on missions and whatnot while the two females were left at home. She remembered how Annabelle would cry when she wouldn't be allowed to go with them.

_"That all sounds fun, Annie. I'm glad you're having a good time while I'm away, and I promise I'll see you soon," _Annabelle had decided to put the phone on speaker so her mother could hear as well.

Annabelle's eyes seemed to brighten. "Do you really promise, Ironhide?"

There was a pause, and Sarah knew he was only saying it to make her feel better. Sarah understood the consequences of being a soldier, and the chances of him never coming home wasn't high, but it was certainly high enough to break Annabelle's fragile heart.

_"I promise, sparkling,"_ He said, and there was a hint of a smile in his tone.

"Good," Annie's smile had widened. "Because you promised me that you'd take me to get a new puppy when you come home, too, you know."

There was a deep laugh and the phone would've vibrated off the table if it was any louder. _"I said I'd take you if your parents agreed,"_

"It's fine with me, if it's fine with Will," Sarah said with a chuckle. It was true. Annabelle had bugged Ironhide endlessly for a new puppy for weeks. She wanted to spend time with her best friend.

There was a chuckle from Ironhide, too. "_Very well. Consider it done, Annie. As soon as I get home, I will take you out to get it."_

Annabelle smiled, her blue eyes almost blazing with excitement. She looked at her mother, who nodded. There was a disappointed sigh. "Okay, well, mommy wants to talk to daddy first, so I have to go."

_"Okay, Annie. I'll talk to you soon, sparkling."_ There was a pause. _"I love you."_

Annabelle giggled. "I love you, too, 'Hide."

Sarah was a little surprised. During Ironhide's years of living with them, she had never really heard him tell the younger one that he loved her. Perhaps he figured she already knew and he didn't have to tell her. Sarah smiled as Annabelle gave her the phone.

Taking it off speaker, she put it up to her ear and waited.

_"Hey sweetie,"_ Will's voice rang through the phone and Sarah smiled at it.

"How are things?" She asked, and then her smile faded into a small frown. "Any bad activity?" She looked at Annie, who was busy playing a computer game.

Will sighed. _"Not yet, but.. I dunno. You never know. With Megatron and Starscream still out there, it's hard to say. But, we did find something strange. Some former leader of the Autobots, Sentinel Prime. Hopefully we'll get it all figured out in time."_

She nodded and then paused. "I'm guessing you can't talk for long, huh?"

He sighed again, knowing this was true. "_Unfortunately."_ There was another pause, and Sarah could hear Will talking to another person. He came back to the phone. _"Sorry, but I gotta go. Duty calls,"_ He chuckled.

"Okay," She breathed heavily, not wanting to leave Will's voice in such a short amount of time. She hardly got to talk to him, but if it was only going to be for three minutes, then so be it. "Bye. I love you."

_"Love you, sweetie,"_ There was a click, but the phone still remained on Sarah's ear. Slowly pulling it away from her face, she sat it on the table and watched Annabelle. She was relieved there wasn't much Decepticon activity, but there was a bad feeling she got when she thought of the Autobots.

"Annie, come up to your room. You don't have to go to sleep, but I don't want you down here by yourself."

Annabelle did as she was told and shut the computer down. With the thoughts still in Sarah's head, she managed to shake it off, and she got up and headed upstairs to her room, closing the door behind her.

* * *

><p>Opening her groggy eyes, her hearing focused on the loud, obnoxious ringing of the house phone. Quickly sitting up, she grabbed the phone that was resting on the charger next to her bed and answered it. "Hello?" Opening her eyes, she managed to read the time on the digital clock. She had fallen asleep at around 9:00PM, and now it was almost 2:00PM the next day.<p>

_"Sarah,"_ She recognized the voice as Will's, and it didn't sound happy at all. _"Sarah, is Annabelle near you?"_

Her heart was racing, she could admit. She knew something was wrong. She had an idea of what it was, but she was praying it was anything but what she was thinking. "No, I- I just woke up. What is it?" She was whispering, just in case Annabelle could hear.

He began by telling her about Sentinel Prime, and how Optimus had revived his old friend and mentor with the powerful Matrix of Leadership. He told her how they had gotten contact with Sam Witwicky again, claiming there was more Decepticon activity and he had ordered Ironhide to protect Sentinel because he was the key to the Decepticons' new plan. _"Sarah,_" He choked, and now Sarah could hear the tears. She could almost predict was he was going to say next, and her tears began to flow. _"That son of a bitch killed Ironhide right on the spot."_ His words came out as sharp breaths and gasps. _"There was nothing.. nothing I could do in time to stop it. I couldn't stop.. the shooting. Oh God, Sarah. The shooting."_ His voice began to crack with each word.

"No," Sarah managed to breath out, laying back down and curling up in a ball on her side, crying. "No, Will. Oh, God, Annabelle."

He seemed to gather himself just enough to speak. _"I dunno if you wanna tell her now-"_

"I have to," She said abruptly, wiping her eyes, but the pain didn't leave. "You know I have to."

There was a pause and Will coughed a little before replying. _"I know," _He whispered. _"But, look,_" He began. _"I just wanted to call and let you know. I have to go now. They're making a big deal about it. I'll talk to you soon, I promise. I love you so much, Sarah."_

"I love you, too." She managed to let out. Once again the phone went dead.

Setting it down on the bed, she stood up and wiped at her eyes. The sudden urge to let her tears out again kept coming back, but she knew she had to hold them back. At least until Annabelle found out. Walking down stairs, she went into the kitchen and found her daughter playing her game again. A tear had managed to escape her eye and she quickly wiped it away before she could turn around.

"Hi, mom." Annie said, a small smile across her mouth. She watched her mother sit down at the kitchen chair, but her face looked anything but happy. "Mommy?" Annabelle questioned, noticing the obvious look on Sarah's face.

Sarah wheeled her chair over to the computer chair, as Annabelle turned it around to face her. Taking her daughter's hands, she stared deep into her eyes. "Annie," She began, but had no idea how to even finish. What should she tell Annabelle? Well, she already knew what she was going to say, but how did she say it? How could she find the courage? "Do.. do you remember what daddy told you about being a soldier?"

Annabelle nodded. "That you fight for your country and your beliefs." It wasn't exactly the answer Sarah was looking for, but it was close enough. Before Sarah could reply, Annabelle unexpectedly continued. "And sometimes there has to be.. sacrifice to reach your goals. He always told me that, too."

"Sacrifice?" Sarah questioned.

Annie shrugged. "I don't know. But Ironhide used to talk to me a lot about it, too. He said that sometimes people have to die to do that. He told me that's what daddy meant."

Sarah was a bit shocked. She never knew Ironhide told Annabelle about death and sacrifice during wars. If it were up to her, she wouldn't have allowed it, for fear that Annabelle wouldn't like Will going off to battle. To Sarah's surprise, Annabelle seemed to understand it a lot more than she expected.

"Annie," Sarah choked back some tears, but couldn't hold the rest of the down pour. Annabelle stared blankly at her mother, clearly able to see the tears falling like a waterfall down her mother's cheeks. "Ironhide had to make a sacrifice."

At first Annabelle looked confused, but then her tiny, blue eyes began to water and sparkle, and the next thing Sarah knew, her daughter was in her lap, crying hysterically. "No I don't want him to go!" She said. "Why did he have to do that?" She took sharp breaths and began to cough. "Mo-mmy," She gasped between the word, and sniffled, huddling closer in to Sarah.

"It's okay," Sarah rubbed her hand against Annabelle's head, kissing it repeatedly. "Sweetie, It's okay. Everything is going to be alright."

* * *

><p>Sarah sat on the couch, staring at Annabelle, who was on the other couch, sound asleep. She had taken hours worth of crying and Sarah had finally managed to get her to calm down.<p>

It was difficult imagining a world without the giant alien robot, but they had done it before, hadn't they? Sarah shook her head to herself. She was just as upset as Annabelle was, and thinking about it wasn't going to help at all. Rubbing her forehead, she stood up and headed for the back door. Stepping outside, she walked down to the yard and stopped. Staring ahead of her at the giant shed that had once been Ironhide's garage, she couldn't get herself to move any further.

But she wanted to.

As she got closer, she opened the door and stepped inside. It was so empty. The only thing in there to keep her company was Will's tools and yard equipment. Sighing, she suddenly did not want to be there anymore, and she was about to turn around and leave.

But a flash of white caught her attention, laying lonely on the ground. Bending down, she picked it up. It was a piece of paper that must've fallen off of the work bench. She recognized the language as Cybertronian immediately, but didn't know what it meant. Turning it over, she was surprised to see a phone number.

As curiosity got the better of her, she headed back to the house, the paper still in hand. When she got inside, she took the phone and pressed the talk button. Hesitating for a moment, she finally pressed the numbers and put the phone up to her ear.

Despite it being an American phone number, she was still surprised to hear the voice on the other side as the woman spoke English. Who would 'Hide have called? "_Hello, can I help you?"_

Sarah's eyes widened and she hurried up and spoke. "Um, I'm sorry, but can I ask who this is?"

The woman on the other line seemed confused, but she answered anyway. "_This is the Yuppies Puppies Pet Shop, located on Magnolia avenue." _She paused. "_My computer is recognizing your phone number. Is this relative of Mr. Hide? He just called me a couple days ago, and had a puppy on hold."_

"Um, this is a relative, yes." She froze. "You said there was a puppy on hold? As in.. waiting to be picked up?"

_"Yes, ma'am. It's already been paid for. He asked if it was alright he come and get it in a couple weeks,_" The lady said.

Sarah was in so much shock, she had to sit down. She remembered Annabelle bothering Ironhide about the puppy for weeks on end. He never actually told her or Will he'd gone out and _bought_ one. She rubbed her forehead and replied. "Would it be alright if I picked the puppy up?"

_"Of course," _The lady said kindly. _"If you'd like to come today, we close at 9:00, so any time before then is good."_

Sarah nodded. "Okay. Thank you." Hanging up the phone, she slowly turned around to face the sleeping Annabelle. Walking over to her, she gently poked her until she woke up. "Annie, sweetie. Could you come with me?"

"Where are we going?" Annie slurred.

Sarah smiled. "For a quick car ride. Come on."

* * *

><p>As Sarah drove down the road, towards Magnolia Avenue like the woman had said, she occasionally looked back at Annabelle through the rear-view mirror. Annabelle's eyes were droopy, full of sadness and that was enough to make Sarah press the gas a little harder.<p>

Soon the building was appearing on the horizon and Sarah smiled to herself. Finally reaching the parking lot, she pulled in a spot and helped Annabelle get out. "Come on, sweetie."

"Why are we at a pet store?" Annabelle asked, but her eyes seemed to get brighter.

Sarah only smiled, taking her daughter's hand and leading her in the store. When she first entered, she began to look around and her eyes landed on at least five cages, and inside the cages were puppies. "Hey, can I help you?"

Sarah recognized the voice and spun around, now looking at a woman. At first Sarah wasn't sure what words should come out of her mouth, but then she spoke anyway. "Um, I just called.. and I'm here to pick up a puppy from Mr. Hide." At this, Annabelle looked up at her mom in surprise.

The woman nodded, "Of course. Right this way please." Sarah and Annabelle followed her, and she led them to the cages with the puppies. "These are the ones on hold. The rest are in the back." She examined the stickers on each cage. "Ah, this one right here." She pointed to one in particular.

Sarah's eyes squinted to one, and she read the name 'Ironhide' written across it. "Now," She began, pointing to it. "Is this the name of the-"

"Puppy," The woman nodded. "Yes. All the puppies are pre-named by those who have bought them."

Sarah couldn't help but feel joy as she nodded and smiled, trying her best not to cry right there in front of the woman and everybody else in the store. "That's.. that's wonderful. Can we check him out now?"

The woman nodded and smiled and took the cage with the puppy, "Sure thing. Follow me." She led them to another door, and they opened it. Inside the room was a small office.

Sarah, who had never had a dog before, was curious. "What kind of dog _is_ this?"

The lady sat behind the desk in the office looking room and began to type on her computer. She looked over at the puppy. "That would be a Doberman Pinscher." Sarah knew those dogs, and she smiled to herself. Ironhide _would_ pick that breed. "So you know the puppy's name is Ironhide. Is that what you want to keep it as?"

Sarah looked down at Annabelle, who had a giant smile across her face. She nodded. "Yes, please."

The woman flashed white teeth. "Alrighty." She put a clipboard in front of Sarah. "I just need your signature there, confirming all this information is correct." When Sarah finished, she gave the clipboard back to the woman. Standing up from her chair, the woman went further back into the room and came back with something in her hand. "This is a fold up cage. You don't have to use it, but we give one away free with a puppy purchase. It's a lot bigger than the one the puppy is currently in."

Sarah took it. "Thank you."

"Also," the lady began. "Mr. Hide wanted me to give this to a Sarah Lennox to give to an Annabelle Lennox, and judging by your signature," She smiled. "I'd assume that's you."

Sarah took the envelope that was being handed to her and Annabelle tried to reach for it, but she pulled away slightly. "We'll read it in the car, okay?"

Annabelle had a pout on her face, but she nodded anyways. "Okay."

Sarah turned back to the woman. "Thank you so much."

The worker smiled. "No problem. Have fun with Ironhide." She winked down at Annabelle. "Take care, ladies."

After saying goodbye, Sarah and Annabelle headed back to the car, Ironhide's cage in Sarah's hand. Sitting the cage in the backseat, Annabelle hopped in next to it and Sarah got in the driver's seat. Taking the envelope, she opened it and pulled out a piece of paper. She unfolded it, but didn't read it. Biting her lip, she turned around just enough to face Annabelle. "I think you should be the one to read it," She said, handing the paper to her daughter.

Annabelle smiled and took it from her mother's hands. She began to read. "Dear Annabelle, I hope you're finally happy as you read this, knowing a new puppy that you've been bugging me for is coming home with you. Unfortunately, I have to go on duty soon, so I won't be able to personally give him to you, but his name is Ironhide. I can't believe I actually named him that, but something tells me.. I won't be coming home. If I do, though, then you won't be reading this and I'm really sorry that you are." Annabelle paused, fully understanding the note's contents and Sarah's eyes were already leaking tears. Annabelle took a deep breath and continued. "But, his name is Ironhide like I said, you know why, Annie? Because somebody needs to guard you, mommy and daddy while I'm away, right? If you didn't laugh at that, then you better laugh now!" And Annie did giggle, making Sarah even laugh. Annabelle continued. "Even though I'm not with you in person, just know that I'm tucked away somewhere in that large heart of yours and I always will be. I love you so much and your family, Annabelle. Tell that to your parents for me, will you? I gotta go, sparkling. I'll always be with you." Annabelle stopped, her hands shaking as small tears slowly dripped down her face. Looking down at the bottom, it was signed, 'Love, Ironhide'.

Sarah turned around in her seat, put the key in the ignition and started the car up. Wiping her eyes before putting her seat belt on, a flashback crossed her mind. She saw Ironhide when he first arrived. Ironhide when he first held baby Annabelle. How terrified he looked that he would hurt the fragile little baby girl. She remembered all the jokes he'd crack one minute and how serious he could be the next.

Then she realized something. Ironhide would be with her and her family for the rest of their lives. Like he said in the note, tucked away in Annabelle's heart. In _all_ their hearts.

"Ready to go home?" Sarah asked.

Annabelle poked her fingers in the puppy's cage, allowing it to lick her fingers, tickling them. She giggled. "Yeah, hurry though! I wanna play with Ironhide."

Sarah smiled, wiping one final tear from her face. This tear wasn't from sadness. It was from the start of something new and something unexplainable. Sometimes things have to happen for something even better to occur.

And that, she knew, was the rebirth of her family guardian.


End file.
